114 HISTORY AND SIGNIFICANCE OF SCIENCE 



The volume by Bayle (1647-1706), entitled "Compel 

 them to Enter in," shows that its author began with skep- 

 ticism and proceeded from thence to toleration. Intellec- 

 tual liberty was Bayle's passion, and his critical examination 

 of existing beliefs was an important step in the initial estab- 

 lishment of modern rationalism. The spirit of toleration 

 which flamed forth in the writings of Voltaire (1694-1778) 

 was the natural culmination of this trend of thought. It 

 has been remarked that Voltaire's genius lay in the fact that 

 he said what everyone thought at the time. If eighteenth 

 century toleration condoned many excesses and proved a 

 cloak for immorality, it was none the less a welcome change 

 from the spirit of persecution which had prevailed. In- 

 dividualism had freer play, and the spread of a truthful 

 spirit outweighed the license which was often the first ex- 

 pression of growing liberalism. The spirit which appeared 

 in literature is, therefore, an example of the implications 

 drawn from scientific knowledge and brought to a focus 

 by their application to the affairs of common life. Mon- 

 taigne, Descartes, Bayle, and Voltaire exemplified and 

 extended the scientific spirit, in that they warred against 

 prejudice and encouraged mankind to examine the founda- 

 tions of belief. 



In regard to the broader influence of science, the eight- 

 eenth century, therefore, marks the final transition from 

 the Renaissance to our own times. The philosophical import 

 of scientific fact and method began to assume its present 

 importance. What may be termed the implications of 

 science assumed definitive form. Science for the first time 

 attained self-consciousness and self-determination. During 

 the eighteenth century men began to realize that the scientific 

 point of view could be extended beyond the boundaries of 

 what had been called the natural world. The political, 

 economic, and theological fields of thought were subjected 

 to scientific examination, if not to exact analysis. Science 

 began to exert a profound influence upon the thought of 



